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My favorite part of NXT last night didn’t involve current champion Kevin Owens.

It didn’t involve the number one contender for the title, Finn Balor, either.

Had nothing to do with Hideo KickTami, Tyler Breeze, or even everyone’s favorite Goon, Bull Dempsey.

The best part of NXT, to me, was the story development for Jason Jordon.

Rather than spend this entire column talking about Jordon, the fractured relationship with his partner Ty Dillinger, and where this goes from here, I’d like to look at the broader theme.

Storytelling

Why? Well, my favorite segment involved Jason Jordon, a guy who up until last night, was for all intents and purposes purely an enhancement talent on NXT. He and Dillinger would come out, the announcers would talk about how hard they work, and then they would lose. Usually fairly quickly. Now, they seem to be doing something with him, and I’m excited.

Take a look at that again. NXT, with only 60 minutes a week, is developing a compelling story between two “jobbers”. Let’s take a look at what else they did last night.

– Furthered the KickTami and Breeze storyline
– Made Dempsey look good again, even in a loss (or so says the Rebel Dentists)
– Used Solomon Crowe’s hacker gimmick to fit in a quick promo during an entrance.
– Continued to make Baron Corbin look like a beast (even if it made little sense)
– Showed Bayley’s new aggressive style while also making Becky Lynch look strong.
– Reminded us all why we liked THE Brian Kendrick in the first place.
– Added some tension between Balor and Owens.
– Set up . . . FINALLY. . . the in ring return of Alex Riley with the attack by Owens on commentary.

Yes, friends. . . They used COMMENTARY to further a storyline.

All of that (and anything else I forgot), by the way, happened in 60 minutes.

This is what sets NXT apart. They only have a short amount of time and a growing list of talents and stories to promote, so they use every spare second they can. Entrances, quick backstage moments, commentary – everything they do is designed to further develop characters and angles. This is why we love NXT so much.

Oh, they also #GiveDivasAChance. . . That’s still trending, right?

WWE doesn’t maximize their time. Why? Maybe because they have so much of it Or maybe because it requires thought, planning and creativity.

Either way, last night’s NXT was a prime example of why its so amazingly good, and why we all should be taking on a new hashtag.